IPL 2014: Manan Vohra reveals he was under pressure to perform

Manan Vohra

Kings XI Punjab’s Manan Vohra admitted that he felt a lot of pressure when he came out to bat for the first time in this season of the IPL. However, the 20-year-old showed no signs of nervousness when he hit 47 runs off just 20 balls against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Wednesday.

“To be honest, there was a lot of pressure, but I took it as an opportunity. I knew if I do well from here after being retained, then my graph can go really high,” Vohra said.

The Punjab-based franchise showed a lot of faith in Vohra by retaining him ahead of the 2014 IPL player auction. The Chandigarh-born expressed his desire of playing for the Kings XI instead of watching his team win from the dugout.

Acknowledging the significance of an opportunity in a tournament such as the IPL, Vohra said, “I was just waiting for one chance to go out in the middle and play. It was a bit frustrating to be out of action and watch the team perform from the sidelines. It is a great opportunity for young boys like me to come out and do well here. I was waiting for this day badly and I am glad I got the chance,”

Vohra revealed that he wasn’t exactly comfortable facing up to Dale Steyn against the Sunrisers. “The first ball that I faced of Steyn, I could not move my feet. I was afraid of him. I told myself that there was no point getting scared and I had to play him. I had practiced playing a lot of short stuff in the nets, and when he bowled short to me, I decided that I would back myself and go for my shots. It worked,” he said.

Young Vohra shares the dressing room with players such as Glenn Maxwell, David Miller and Virender Sehwag. When asked about how much of an inspiration these players are, Vohra said: “By having players like them, the job for the youngsters becomes a lot easier. There is no pressure on us to perform since we know they will cover up and score at a brisk pace. We have just been asked to go and enjoy ourselves on a given day, which helps us to do well.”

Vohra was all praises for his teammate Maxwell, who has taken the IPL by storm with his big hitting.

The 20-year-old said: “He is too good a player and a very aggressive hitter. The way he approaches the game is brilliant. He backs himself every single time and that is something I want to learn from him. He has only one style of playing, and we all know what that is.”

Despite his aggressive style that suits the shortest format, Vohra is keen to focus on the traditional forms of cricket. “I enjoy playing the longest format of the game. I am still young and I would want improve my technique and get accustomed to the Test style of playing,” he concluded.